Cardiff City boss Malky Mackay given final transfer approval

Cardiff City have moved to strengthen the position of manager Malky Mackay to calm unrest at the Premier League club.

Mackay met the club's board on Monday after the removal of his head of recruitment Iain Moody last week.

In a statement from the Cardiff board on Tuesday, the club said that transfer dealings will be conducted "subject to the manager's final approval".

Owner Tan Sri Vincent Tan has also agreed to write off interest of £5.8m on previous loans made to the club.

There was also provision for future loans to the club to be made interest free up to an "aggregate value" of £50m.

Mackay added Moody to his backroom staff as head of recruitment following his appointment as Cardiff manager in the summer of 2011, having worked with him closely at former club Watford.

In his scouting role, former Watford press officer Moody helped the Premier League newcomers sign summer recruits including Gary Medel from Sevilla and Steven Caulker from Tottenham.

But last week Moody was first suspended and then left the club, who brought in Alisher Apsalyamov, 23, as his acting replacement.

Apsalyamov is not believed to have any previous experience in football and his appointment is the latest controversy in the reign of chairman Vincent Tan.

The reason for Moody's departure has not yet been explained by the club.

BBC Wales Sport football correspondent Rob Phillips believes that the latest development offers hope of calming what was becoming a fraught situation at the south Wales club, who are in their debut Premier League season.

"This is very much the hand of the chairman Mehmet Dalman, an experienced businessman, to calm the waters and to assure Cardiff City fans that the upheaval of last week caused by the suspension then the departure of Iain Moody will not be repeated," Phillips said.

"If you notice, there is no mention of Alisher Apsalyamov, the 23-year-old who was previously painting the stadium, amongst other things, and who was brought in to replace Iain Moody."

Tan took over Cardiff in 2010 and helped finance their promotion to the Premier League last season as the club returned to English football's top flight for the first time in more than 50 years.

But the chairman caused consternation among many Cardiff fans during the summer of 2012 after changing the club's colours from blue to red, while there have been reports of dressing-room unrest over unpaid bonuses.

Mackay was invited to attend the board meeting on Monday, which was convened according to the statement to "discuss the events of the last two weeks in detail".

Resolutions made by Cardiff City board:

1. The board will be restructured with immediate effect to include the following committees:

a. The Nomination and Corporate Governance Committee chaired by Mehmet Dalman. Its main responsibilities will be:

· to support the manager, Malky Mackay, on all player purchases and sales. All transfer dealings will be conducted subject to the manager's final approval.

· to establish clear corporate governance procedures across the club.

b. An Audit Committee, chaired by Michael Filiou. Its main responsibility will be:

· to review and make recommendations to strengthen the internal financial controls within the club and benchmark the club's financials.

c. Health & Safety Committee, chaired by Steve Borley. Its main responsibility will be:

· to enhance the club's operations to the highest standards in health & safety.

d. Special Committee for the expansion of Cardiff City Stadium - chaired by Steve Borley to oversee current East Stand expansion plans.

2. Tan Sri Vincent Tan has agreed to write off interest of approximately £5.8m on previous loans made to the club and stated that all future loans up to an aggregate value of £50m will also be interest free.

3. The board ratified the appointments of Mehmet Dalman as director and chairman of the board, Michael Filiou as non-executive director, and Amir Fitzhugh as company secretary. The board ratified the resignation of Mr Len Win Kong as a director of the club.

Full statement from Cardiff City website here.